Fluid-distensible, load sustaining bag rollers and vehicles incorporating such bag rollers (as disclosed in my prior U.S. Patents referred to above) provide a number of important operating advantages for off-road operation.
It is a primary objective of the present invention to further improve vehicles of this kind and the bag rollers and related suspension systems to achieve improvements in operation, particularly for increased speed in off-road operations.
It is a specific object of the present invention to construct the bag roller in a way that:
(1) provides maximum flexibility in the walls and tread area of the bag roller and to thereby maximize the ability of the bag roller to conform to the terrain with minimum disturbance of the terrain;
(2) provides maximum dynamic bag balancing for increased speeds; and
(3) eliminates carcass restraining areas to minimize carcass stresses and to thus provide increased bag life.
It is another specific object of the present invention to incorporate suspension systems in the vehicles to dampen and to minimize bag roller oscillation so that high speeds of operation can be sustained.
It is a further specific object of the present invention to construct off road vehicles having four, or more, bag rollers associated with each of two frame sections and with frame sections that will swing and swivel with respect to one another to provide frame steering and to provide a strong-back construction which does not permit any longitudinal bending of one frame section with respect to another and which permits increased speed while the vehicle is traversing minor humps or ditches and rock strewn terrain.